Heavy metals in coal mine groundwater responding to mining activity: concentration, temporal variation and speciation

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 390-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
He-rong Gui ◽  
Man-li Lin ◽  
Wei-hua Peng

Six groundwater samples were collected from four aquifers in Renlou coal mine, northern Anhui Province, China, and concentration, temporal variation and speciation of five heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) were analyzed. The results of physicochemical parameters and major ions showed that the selected groundwater were representative samples of Quaternary aquifer (QA), coal measure aquifer (CA), Taiyuan limestone aquifer (TA) and Ordovician limestone aquifer (OA). Cr, Ni and Zn increased in the four aquifers from 2002 to 2014, but Pb decreased from 2006 to 2014. Cu concentration increased in QA and TA, but decreased in CA and OA. Although all monitoring results met the standards recommended by WHO and GB5749-2006, Cr and Cu in some groundwater samples exceeded GB/T 14848-93, especially in CA. Soluble metallic hydroxides were the dominant species of heavy metals in QA, while free ions were the main species in TA and OA. Excepted Ni2+ and Zn2+, CuCO3(aq) and PbCO3(aq) were the dominant species of Cu and Pb in CA, respectively, indicating more CO2 had been flooded and dissolved in groundwater from ground atmospheric environment. The enhanced concentration and special dominant species of heavy metals revealed that the ‘closed’ characteristics of CA in Renlou coal mine might have been broken due to coal mining activity.

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 1368-1376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elsayed M. Abu El Ella ◽  
Ahmed A. Elnazer ◽  
Salman A. Salman

Southwest Giza area is one of the most complicated regions in Egypt because of the combination of agricultural, industrial and urbanization activities with few studies about water resources contamination with heavy metals. In this study, ten surface water samples and eight groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for pollution with Fe, Mn, As, Cr, Cd, Pb and Cu. The samples were collected randomly according to the topographic locations and accessibility. The surface water is suitable for both drinking and irrigation use according to its salinity (total dissolved solids, TDS < 500 mg/l) and content of major ions. Unfortunately, some samples contain concentrations of As, Cd, Cu and Pb higher than the WHO drinking water guidelines. The groundwater samples have TDS ranging from 204 to 2,100 mg/l. Also, the groundwater contains higher concentrations of Fe, Mn and As than surface water. The highest concentrations of heavy metals As, Cd and Pb were recorded in the desert fringes and close to the industrial complexes indicating the role of geological sediments in the transportation and migration of pollutants. The unconfined part of the Quaternary aquifer in the desert fringes is more vulnerable to contamination. The results of this study reflect the role of human and industrial activates in polluting water resources with heavy metals, which puts the aquatic environment in the study area under stress.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 354-362
Author(s):  
Song Chen ◽  
Herong Gui

In this study, we collected 22 groundwater samples and supporting measurements from different coal-mining districts in the Huaibei coalfield to examine the age, hydro-chemical characteristics, and evolution of groundwater in the Ordovician limestone aquifer (OA). We determined the groundwater concentrations of major ions, stable isotopes (hydrogen and oxygen) and a radio isotope (14C). All the samples were alkaline in nature, and had pH values between 7.10 and 10.80. The total dissolved solids (TDS) contents varied from 119 to 2,443 mg/l. The concentrations of δD and δ18O in groundwater varied from −64.32‰ to −42.76‰, and from −8.62‰ to −5.40‰, with mean values of −56.38‰ and −7.62‰, respectively. The groundwater at OA is recharged by rainfall or surface water, and, because of either the long residence time or runoff into the aquifer, is influenced by water-rock interactions. The age of the groundwater in the OA ranged from 2,660a to 10,040a, and the groundwaters were youngest and oldest in the Renlou and Yangzhuang coal mines, respectively. Contour diagrams of TDS in groundwater, the groundwater age, and the spatial distribution of the water types indicated that the Renlou and Yangzhuang mines were the recharge and discharge areas, respectively.


Geosciences ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 200 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Manikandan ◽  
S. Chidambaram ◽  
M. V. Prasanna ◽  
Rakesh Roshan Ganayat

The area chosen for study, Krishnagiri district, has a hard rock terrain and the aquifers located there are sparsely recharged by limited rainfall. The study area has a complex geology with hard rock aquifers. To have an overall view of the trace metals concentration in the groundwater of the study area, 39 groundwater samples were collected during Post Monsoon (POM) representing various lithologies. pH, EC, TDS, major ions and 22 heavy metals were analyzed for all the samples. Ca-Cl is the dominant water facies in the groundwater, which indicates the dissolution of ions by local precipitation. The analysis shows the dominance of trace metal levels in groundwater as follows: Zn > Ba > Sr > Fe > Al > B > Mn > Cu > Pb > Ni > V > Li > Rb > Cr > Mo > Se > As > Co > Cd > Ag > Sb > Be. The pollution indices, namely the heavy metal pollution index (HPI) and degree of contamination (Cd) were calculated to assess the drinking and agriculture water usage. The pollution indices show that 2% of samples are polluted with respect to HPI and 3% with respect to the degree of contamination. The heavy metals (Al-Cr-Mn-Fe-Ni-Co-Zn-Ba-Pb) in groundwater show significant correlations with these indices, suggesting that they are affected by weathering of rock matrix with less anthropogenic impact. Stable isotopes (Oxygen and Hydrogen) were analyzed to identify the possible recharge mechanisms in the groundwater. It has been identified that recharge is mainly due to the local precipitation, which is the result of release metals in the groundwater through weathering.


2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanaa A. Megahed

Abstract Background The limited water resources in arid environments in addition to the effect of agricultural and anthropogenic activities on groundwater quantity and quality necessitate paying more attention to the quality assessment of these resources. The present studies assess the quality of groundwater resources in Wadi El-Assiuti, south Egypt, and evaluate their suitability for drinking and irrigation purposes. To achieve this goal, 159 groundwater samples were collected from the outlet and central parts of the Wadi El-Assiuti during the autumn season (October–November) of 2019 and were analyzed for major ions, trace elements and heavy metals. Results The results indicate that the TDS values range between 1972 and 6217 ppm, while the concentration of trace elements (Fe++, Mn++ and Ni+) ranges between 0.05 and 0.46, 0.11 and 0.221 and 0.01 and 0.6 ppm, respectively. These results show that all groundwater samples are clearly unacceptable and inappropriate for human drinking due to their high content of total dissolved solids, trace elements and heavy metals, particularly in the majority of samples according to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and the Egyptian standards (Eg. St. 2007) for drinking water quality. Spatial analysis of the TDS values in geographic information system environment indicates that the salinity is higher in the northeast and gradually decreases southward. Sodium adsorption ratio, US Salinity Laboratory classification (1954), residual sodium carbonate, soluble sodium percentage and permeability index show that most groundwater samples are suitable for irrigation purposes. Conclusions The integrated approach provided in this study highlights the spatially distributed suitability of groundwater resources in Wadi El-Assiuti and can be applied in similar basins worldwide.


2022 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Yawar Ali Khan ◽  
Mohamed El Kashouty ◽  
Waleed Gusti ◽  
Amit Kumar ◽  
Ali Mohammad Subyani ◽  
...  

Seawater has intruded into many of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coastal aquifers, with varying degrees of extension depending on location, hydrogeology, and population density. This study aimed to evaluate and comprehend the processes that influence the hydrogeochemical characteristics of the coastal aquifer in Saudi Arabia’s Khulais region. Groundwater samples were taken from nineteen locations during the winter and summer of 2021, and data from major ions and trace elements were examined and interpreted using ArcGIS software. The total dissolved solids (TDS) concentrations ranged between 480 and 15,236 mg/L and 887–18,620 mg/L in winter and summer, respectively. Groundwater TDS concentration was observed to be influenced by groundwater flow, lithogenic, anthropogenic, and seawater intrusion in this study (2021) when compared to 2016. The concentration of nitrate (NO3−) and strontium (Sr) in most samples exceeds the drinking guidelines. The occurrence of high concentrations of bromide (Br), Fluoride (F), Iron (Fe) (winter and summer) and Aluminum (Al), Boron (B), Chromium (Cr), Nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu) and manganese (Mn) (winter) was also exhibited and observed up to more than drinking and irrigation limits. The central part of the study area was affected by seawater intrusion. The hydraulic conductivity of the topsoil was measured, and it ranged from 0.24 to 29.3 m/day. Based on electrical conductivity (EC) and sodium absorption ratio, most aquifer samples were unsuitable for irrigation (SAR).


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 217-228
Author(s):  
Song Chen ◽  
Herong Gui

Abstract To understand the characteristics and distribution of alkaline earth elements in groundwater in the Taiyuan Formation limestone aquifer in Huaibei coalfield, 29 groundwater samples were collected, and the concentrations of major ions and alkaline earth metals (beryllium, barium and strontium) determined. The results show that the groundwater is alkaline, with the sample pH values between 7.40 and 10.10. The total dissolved solids (TDS) concentration in the samples was between 123 and 5,520 mg/l. The concentration ranges of Be, Ba and Sr are 0.0001 to 0.03 μg/l, 2.43 to 215.21 μg/l, and 13.08 to 18,168.5 μg/l, respectively. The major ions are mainly controlled by carbonate dissolution, with some ion exchange. The Be content is influenced mainly by pH, while the Sr has the same source as Ca and Mg. A concentration contour diagram for groundwater TDS and Sr can be used to identify groundwater runoff conditions. The Zhahe and Suixiao coal-mining districts are the main groundwater recharge areas, and Linhuan district the discharge area. The Sr/Mg and Sr/Ca ratios are highest where the groundwater residence time in the aquifer is longest. The two highest Sr/Ca ratios are 340.1 and 116.6, and occur in the Haizi and Yuanyi coalmines, respectively, suggesting that groundwater residence times are long in them.


2018 ◽  
Vol 250 ◽  
pp. 06009
Author(s):  
Fitryaliah Mohd Shahli ◽  
Siti Nazahiyah Rahmat ◽  
Siti Nor Aishah Mohd Salleh

The hydrochemical characteristics and the type of groundwater were identified in order to investigate the elements of major ions of groundwater samples in hydro-meteorology station located in Universiti Tun Hussien Onn Malaysia, UTHM. The objectives of the study were to measure the concentration of major ions and evaluate their chemical compositions . The measured ions were namely sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), potassium (K), chloride (Cl), bicarbonate (HCO3), sulfate (SO4), heavy metals substance such as zinc (zn), ferum (Fe), copper (Cu), and manganese (Mn). Eight (8) groundwater samples were collected between January 2018 and March 2018 from a tubewell located at the Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Parit Raja, Johor followed by laboratory analyses by using Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater. The concentrations of major cations and anions were determined and the concecutive strength were Na>Mg>K>Ca and Cl>HCO3>SO, respectively. Correlations among various pollutants were also observed. Strong correlations (p<0.01) were found between Total Dissolved Solid (TDS) and Electric Conductivity (EC). Both TDS and EC also showed strong positive correlations with Na, Mg, and Cl ions. The dispersal of major ions in groundwater was determined using piper diagram. The major cation and anion found were Na and Cl, respectively. The type of water that predominates in the study area was Na–Cl which indicated the groundwater influence from seawater intrusion. Mean concentrations for heavy metals parameters were also identified. The values milligram per litre (mg/L) were Mn (0.20), Cu (0.01), Fe (0.50) and Zn (0.04), respectively. Overall, the selected heavy metal parameters which were Mn, Cu, Fe and Zn met the Recommended Raw Water Standard by Ministry of Health, Malaysia.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-103
Author(s):  
Song Chen ◽  
Herong Gui

In order to understand the isotopic characteristics of coal mine water in diverse aquifers, ten groundwater samples were collected from three aquifers – Quaternary (QA), Coal-bearing (CA), and Limestone (LA) – in Xutuan coal mine, Anhui Province, China. The geochemical characteristics of major ions and isotopes were determined, and the results showed that all of the groundwater samples are HCO3-Na·K or Cl-Na·K types. The concentrations of Na+ + K+ decreased in the order CA &gt; QA &gt; LA, whereas the content of Ca2+ and Mg2+ increased from CA to LA. Groundwater in LA is meteoric in origin, while that in QA is clearly influenced by surface water. The δ13Cdic and δ18Odic in groundwater samples from LA, QA and CA are influenced by the surrounding strata, CO2 and microorganism activity, respectively. The strontium concentration decreases in the sequence LA &gt; CA &gt; QA, but water samples from CA give the highest value of 87Sr/86Sr. Strontium is released by dissolution from the surrounding rock, and the 87Sr/86Sr ratio could be used to identify the groundwater source.


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